


Help Me, I'm a Mess

by CastielFollowMe



Series: Single Dad Shiro Verse [50]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-21
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-10-08 22:23:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10397514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CastielFollowMe/pseuds/CastielFollowMe
Summary: Keith and Shiro decide to spend a day together at the zoo, unfortunately large crowds and lions





	

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: "Daddy Shiro and Baby Keef are so cute, I just binge read every single thing you have. I have a request if you have the time? Like six year old Keith and Shiro going to the zoo and Keith and Keith riding around on his dad's shoulders and sharing ice cream and it's all fun until they stop for bathroom breaks and while shiro is going he has keith stand RIGHT by the door and hold his phone and tells him to yell if he needs something, that he'll be right out i a minute or less. Buuuut keef is +
> 
> a baby and easily distracted and while he’s waiting and holding on to the phone and keeping his foot on the exact brick his daddy asked him to stay by, he sees a poster of a LION. And holy cow. They hadn’t seen the lions yet. Surely he can just meet his Daddy by the lions. So he leaves the phone on the brick and he can obviously read signs he’s a big boy so he makes his way to the lions on his own but accidentally goes down a zoo keeper path and gets a little lost and he’s terrified and he MADE A MISTAKE HE WANTS HIS DADDY. Meanwhile Shiro hurries out of the bathroom and Keith isn’t there. The phone is there. Keith is not. WHY WOULD KEITH LEAVE THE PHONE SOMEONE HAD TO HAVE TAKEN HIM and cue panicked dad, he’s ready to flip the entire zoo upside down. Shut the gates. No one leaves until he finds his baby. Hit me with all the angst you have. Okay sorry for the long request ily"

Sometimes Shiro understood why parents had leashes disguised as cute little backpacks attached to their children. Sometimes.

              Normally he was against (and slightly appalled) by such treatment towards children, but right now Shiro was beginning to understand why parents wound up using them. It was exhausting keeping up with Keith today at the zoo, and more than once Shiro _almost_ regretted bringing the six-year-old.

              However, the smile that was lighting up Keith’s face and his little innocent look of awe shoved aside any doubt or frustration. He’d do _anything_ in the world to keep that sparkle in Keith’s eye forever.

              Though, Shiro was just glad that Keith’s friends had all been a bit too busy to hang out at the zoo toady with Keith and Shiro. He didn’t know if he could handle three more rambunctious little kids. One was enough for now, thank you very much.

              Keith normally wasn’t too emotional and didn’t show too much outward excitement, especially out in public. In crowded, loud, dirty places. However, even with Keith being hesitant with crowds and annoyed by all the loud noises he was happier than Shiro had seen in a long time, to be able to see all of the different types of animals up close. Keith had his stuffed animal close to him, where he could constantly rub and stroke the fur and had a little stress ball in his pocket in case he got too nervous, but Shiro could easily tell when the crowds were getting too big around an enclosure; or when Keith didn’t have enough room and they needed to leave asap.

              He was quick to pick Keith up and head off to the neck exhibit in the zoo, already talking about the next animal they were going to see. Keith would usually instantly calm down in Shiro’s arms before getting more excited about the next new animal to see.

              So far he’d seen elephants even bigger than his _house!_

              And lazy cheetahs that didn’t do much besides whine.

              He even saw a baby giraffe that was taller than his daddy!

              Then there were the fluffy little penguins that waddled in a funny way and the monkeys that were kinda mean to each other.

              Overall, Keith was having a terrific time at the zoo, even with all of the other annoying people.

              The day was cloudy, which meant that it was less crowded than usual due to the weather and Shiro had gone early enough to try to avoid the mid-day rushes. Overall, it was a lot less crowded at 7:45 am than it was at 1:00 pm, but even with all of Shiro’s precautions he couldn’t avoid crowds entirely. Keith simply opted to stick close to Shiro and he seemed alright so far and at the rate that the two Shiroganes were going at, they would be done with the zoo before 11 am, with plenty of time to each lunch and escape the mid-day rush.

              “Okay buddy, what should we see next?” Shiro asked, swinging Keith’s arm as they maneuvered away from a crowded exhibit for the Otters. Keith was still smiling after getting his picture taken with an otter in the tank _right next to him._ However, Shiro knew he was starting to get nervous of the people squeezing in around them and it was time to head to the next animal exhibit.

              “Ummmm, I dunno. What else is there to see?” Keith frowned, his little heart beating at a much more normal pace the further they went from the otters. Shiro paused right outside a restroom area and studied the map. He was trying to decide which exhibits would be least crowded but while still being exciting enough for Keith.

              Shiro eyed the bathroom, realizing that he did in fact need to go, after spending so long wandering around and keeping hydrated ( _Very important daddy to drink lots and lots of water. You finish that water bottle!)_.

              “Hold on, here. You decide which animal you want to see next on the map, while daddy has to use the bathroom, okay?” Shiro asked, handing over his phone and the map to Keith. Keith nervously fiddled between his lion and his ranger hat (with the string cut off) before nodding. He was a big kid now, after all, and that meant he didn’t need his daddy by his side _every_ second. Shiro smiled and gently stroked Keith’s cheek.

              “Okay buddy, now you stay right here. I’ll be super quick.” Shiro promised, to which Keith nodded once more without looking directly at Shiro. Instead he focused on the map in his hands with a determined look, causing Shiro to chuckle. Quickly he entered the single bathroom leaving Keith alone outside.

              Luckily there wasn’t too many people outside of the bathrooms and Keith didn’t feel as panicked being alone. He clutched the phone and map tighter in his hands before shifting his stuffed lion under his arm. Keith looked away from the map momentarily, before looking around the area he was in before his eyes widened dramatically.

              There was a sign indicating the new exhibit on the _lions._

              Keith had never seen a lion before.

              A lion.

              A _lion._

              _A lion!_

              Keith’s eyes sparkled suddenly and his entire body vibrated with sudden excitement. He could feel himself beginning to rock back and forth on his heels in excitement. _He could get to see an actual lion today!_ The map dropped from Keith’s hand and he clutched the stuff lion even tighter to his body. As he rocked, Keith glanced back and forth between the sign and the still closed bathroom door. Suddenly it felt like his daddy was taking _forever._

              Keith bit his lip and continued to rock.

              That’s when a thought came to him. _What if I just meet him there? Like how Hunk meets his baby sister at work? Yeah, daddy will just meet me there and I can save us a spot!_ With the logical descision made, the six-year-old decided to leave his daddy’s phone down so that his daddy could get it back right away before he scurried off towards the signs.

              “Daddy I wanna see the lions.” Keith said over his shoulders, reading the signs like the big kid that he was and scurrying off in the right direction. Leaving Shiro and his phone behind. As he left, he didn’t hear his daddy washing his hands and finishing up.

x.V.x

              “All done. So where did you decide to go?” Shiro said as he exited the restroom. When he was met with silence, Shiro frowned and then his heart sunk.

              He looked around, spinning around in circles, several times before he realized that Keith was _gone._ Keith wasn’t anywhere around here. The area had gotten slightly more crowded since earlier and Shiro felt his heart beginning to race.

              “Keith? Keith?” He called around, looking everywhere around the bathroom. “Keith? Keith, sweetheart, this isn’t funny! Where are you? Keith?!” Shiro nervously wandered around in circles, trying to look in every place that Keith could be hiding but found no luck. His palms were beginning to sweat and his breathing was starting to come out in short, painful breaths. There was a sudden and sharp _squeezing_ feeling that wrapped around his heart like an icy cold fist.

              “Keith?!”

              _Where could he have gone?_

              “Keith?!”

_What if someone took him?_

              “Keith?!”

              _What if he’s hurt?_

              “KEITH?!” Shiro froze when he caught sight of _his_ cellphone lying on the floor. The same phone that he had given Keith earlier was just lying around unattended on the ground. Shiro felt his throat tighten his heart leap out of his chest.

              Instantly, his mind began to imagine the worst case scenarios. Like Keith being kidnapped and taken out of the zoo, or Keith being stepped on in the crowd, or Keith _falling into an animal enclosure._

              “Oh my god! Keith, Keith!” Shiro snatched up his phone, pulling harshly at his hair as he tore down a random path in the zoo. He shoved past people, occasionally stopping to ask if anyone had seen his precious little boy, but _no one_ had. Shiro felt his worst fears beginning to be confirmed.

              “Keith?! Keith!”

              “Excuse me sir, is everything alright?” Shiro whipped around so fast at the sudden voice, startling the poor woman. His eyes were wide with panic and unshed tears and the woman, who turned out to be a worker for the zoo, began to piece together what was happening. After all, she had seen many cases of missing children and panicked parents in the zoo. It was a big place after all; kids were bound to wander off.

              “You need to _lock_ all the gates! Don’t let anyone in or out!” Shiro suddenly commanded, eyes still wide, heart still racing and skin beginning to pale.

              The woman blinked owlishly. _This was new._ “Sir, please, if you could _calmly_ tell me what is wrong, I can help you.”

              “Fuck, we don’t have time! My son – my son is _gone!_ We need to make sure they don’t leave.” Shiro gripped his hair to the point that the woman was sure he was going to rip it out and she swallowed.

              “Sir is your son lost?”

              “He’s gone!” Shiro practically wailed, sounding a lot less intimidating than he could have and the woman felt his heart soften. She smiled sympathetically. “Oh god – I’m a terrible father. How could I have let this happen? Someone probably grabbed him – some creep!”

              “Sir, we don’t know if anyone took your son. He could have just wandered off.”

              “You don’t _know_ if anyone didn’t take him though!” Shiro roared but the woman didn’t seem bothered by his sudden burst of anger. Deep down, he felt guilty and knew that this wasn’t her fault but his mind was in a bit of a frazzle right now.

              “You’re right. I don’t know. Neither of us know, but panicking will _not_ help your son.” The woman reprimanded firmly causing Shiro to flinch back. “I need you to calm yourself and get a hold of the situation if you want us to help you find your son.” Shiro swallowed thickly but his heart did not stop beating wildly in his chest.

              “But – he – he could be so scared right now, and alone.” Shiro choked out, barely keeping his tears at bay. The woman’s expression remained firm but she felt herself soften at the man’s worry for his son. It was obvious that he loved his son but unfortunately these accidents happen.

              “He might be, and that is why I need you to be calm. For _him._ He’s going to be very scared when we find him and freaking out will only scare him even more.” _She was right._ Shiro nodded shakily and the woman smiled. “The zoo will do everything in its power to ensure that your son is found safe and sound and that everything will be okay. How about you tell me your guys’ names?”

              Shiro swallowed and took a deep breath. “I’m Shiro. My son is Keith and he’s six-years-old. His favorite color is Red, he doesn’t like crowds and he’s autistic…”

x.V.x

              Keith was beginning to regret not waiting for his daddy.

              He hadn’t found the lions yet and he was tired. And scared and nervous. Keith had wandered down a more secluded path, off the main pathways when they suddenly became too crowded for Keith’s likings. All of the people and noises were making Keith itch and feel antsy and he didn’t want to be around them anymore, especially without his daddy. So Keith had taken a more secluded path by the trees, which lead to the lions.

              Though he didn’t’ read that this path was for Zoo Keepers only.

              Keith felt the beginnings of tears building in his eyes. _I wish daddy were here. I want to be in his arms._ Keith sniffled to himself and clutched the lion closer to him. Keith only took a step further before he had run straight into a very solid form and fell back onto his butt. Frightened, Keith panicked and did the first thing that came to mind.

              He screamed.

              “Whoa, kid. What are you doing back here?” A deep voice rumbled over the sound of Keith’s scream and Keith turned frightened eyes up towards the stranger and found his screams were caught in his throat.

              The man had deep brown eyes with flecks of green and gold in them under the sun, and dark skin. But what caught Keith’s attention first were the _dozens_ of scars littering the man’s lower face and around his eyes. Trailing down Keith could see similar scars all along the man’s arms and legs that slid up into his tan shorts. _Just like daddy._

              The man stared at Keith with an annoyed expression (probably because a brat was somewhere he wasn’t supposed to be) before his eyes softened in sudden realization. This kid looked familiar.

              “Keith?”

              Keith jumped in shock, at the gentle question from the man. “H-How do you know my name?! N-Not supposed to talk to strangers.” Keith almost buried his face into his lion, frozen where he stood, as the man slowly began to kneel down to Keith’s height. His heart was racing, not because of the man’s scarred face but because he was a stranger that _knew his name._

              “Keith. Where is your father, Shiro?”

              _How did he know daddy?_ Keith clamped his mouth shut and the man blinked.

              “I am Antok. I am a friend of your father, Takashi Shirogane.” _He knew daddy’s whole name?_ “We served in the military together.” Keith’s eyes widened. His daddy had vaguely talked about serving in the military before Keith was born and he’d mentioned the names of some of his buddies there, though Keith had never met any of them before. Antok’s name did sound familiar.

              “H-How do I know you’re not lying?” Keith eyed the man suspiciously, trying to hide how nervous he was. He scowled when the man chuckled at him and smiled softly.

              “Well, I know that your father has a prosthetic arm made of robotic material and metal. It’s his right arm.” The man said and Keith felt his eyes widen. _How could he know that about daddy, unless…_

              “Can you help me find daddy?!” Keith suddenly jumped at Antok, causing his to blink in shock and slight discomfort. He was never good with kids – many were scared just at the sight of his face but Shiro’s kid didn’t seem bothered at all. “I lost him and I don’t know where the lions are and now I’m scared. I wanna see my daddy again!” Keith sniffled pathetically and Antok panicked. He really wasn’t good with kids and tears.

              “Ah, there, there.” Antok awkwardly patted Keith’s head before pulling out his radio. “Here, I bet your father is looking for you at this very moment. Let’s radio to the head center and let them know what’s going on. They’ll be able to find your father.” When Keith’s eyes lit up brighter than the stars, Antok couldn’t help but smile.              

              Shiro’s kid was pretty cute.

x.V.x

              “Daddy!”

              “Keith, oh my god, you’re alright!” Shiro had grabbed Keith out of Antok’s arms and held him as tight as he could against him, without even realizing who had been holding Keith. Keith burst into tears, instantly burying his face into his dad’s neck. Shiro rubbed his back, unable to fight back his own tears as he rubbed his son’s back and comforted him.

              “You’re okay. You’re okay.” Shiro whispered over and over again. Eventually Keith and Shiro both calmed down but Keith refused to leave his arms and was exhausted, so Shiro decided a scolding could wait until they were home. When Shiro turned to face his son’s rescuer, his jaw almost dropped.

              “Antok?!”

              “Hello, Takashi.” Antok waved with a monotone voice. Even under his usual mask, Shiro recognized his right away. “I see this is the son you have told us much about, though I wish our first meeting would have been under better circumstances.” Shiro nodded dumbfound and thanked the gods for his luck.

              “Antok, daddy’s friend.” Keith said tiredly.

              “Uh, yeah. Did Antok tell you this?” Shiro smiled after blinking. Keith nodded sleepily and Shiro shifted to rest Keith on his hip.

              “From army. Antok help me.”

              “Thank you Antok. I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done.” Shiro held out his hand for the man to shake, only for Antok to clasp a hand on his shoulder.

              “It’s alright my friend. I would do anything for your family after all you’ve done for me in the military.” Antok said, causing Shiro to choke up again. “I am honored to finally meet your son. He is a very special boy.”

              Shiro smiled softly, brushing back Keith’s hair. “That he is.”

              “Daddy, we still gotta see the lions.”

              “Anything for you my sweet boy.” _Thank you for keeping him safe._


End file.
